They Really Can Stop Somebody

UCLA is often preoccupied with offense and dismissive of the dirty work of defense, like someone who loves to cook but refuses to clean up.

But against USC on Wednesday, the opposite was true. The Bruins wanted to avoid a season sweep by the Trojans so badly they clamped down, holding USC to 38.7% shooting in the 67-65 victory.

There were flaws. Center Dan Gadzuric was timid early because he wanted to avoid fouls, and Sam Clancy scored 12 of the Trojans’ first 14 points, all on shots inside five feet.

And the Bruins were so focused on stopping seniors David Bluthenthal and Brandon Granville, who were four of 18 shooting, that previously unknown Gennaro Busterna was left open to make three three-point baskets.

But overall, this was UCLA’s best defensive game. Rico Hines took charges on consecutive possessions, Matt Barnes took a charge and Gadzuric blocked two shots. On several occasions USC had trouble getting off a shot in 35 seconds.

Then again, so did the Bruins. All the attention to defense left them less focused with the ball--witness their 18 turnovers and the dry spell in the last eight minutes that resulted in an 11-point lead evaporating.

Had Billy Knight not made the winning shot at the buzzer, the offensive disarray would be a more pertinent topic. As it is, the Bruins noticed.

“We played defense and rebounded because we knew that would be the key,” Barnes said. “But we lost our flow on offense.”

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Jason Kapono made all eight of his free throws against the Trojans, stretching his streak without a miss to 20. He has made 30 of his last 31, improving to 87.4% for the season.

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Steve Henson